The Love Of A Hero
by whitecrossgirl
Summary: While it was hard maintaining his double life as both Arthur Pendragon and Spiderman; Arthur had to admit, there were times when being a superhero had it's perks.


**AN: I'm bored and this is one of my favourite movie kisses ever. **

"Thanks for helping me with this assignment, I couldn't understand any of what we were told in class." Gwen smiled at Arthur as she shifted the strap of her bag onto her shoulder as the students walked out of the library.

"Anytime," Arthur smiled at his friend. It pained him to think of Gwen that way, they had known each other since September, when they started university and he was still very firmly stuck in the dreaded Friend Zone. Arthur glanced at the dark sky and pouring rain before he turned to Gwen. "Do you want a lift back to halls?"

"No I'll be fine. I'll see you tomorrow." Gwen replied as she opened her bag and reached for her umbrella and Arthur turned to go the opposite direction. Arthur glanced back over his shoulder to see two men approach Gwen and push her into an alley that ran behind the campus library. Arthur stopped in his tracks and glanced around, ensuring nobody could see him as he dove behind one of the buildings and tore off his clothes revealing the costume underneath. With no time to pull on his mask; Arthur shot webs from his hands, lifting himself onto the library building and looking into the alley.

The two men had appeared from nowhere. Gwen had been walking down the road when she had heard footsteps behind her. Before she could react, one of the men grabbed her arm and she could see the hilt of the knife in his hand and froze.

"Into the alley sweetheart," the man ordered as the other grabbed her other arm and they all but threw her into the alley. Gwen hit the ground with a painful smack, her umbrella scattering away into the dark. The two men walked towards Gwen, ski masks pulled over their faces to shield their identities and both armed with knives. Gwen pulled herself to her feet and stumbled back against the wall of the alley.

"I don't have anything you want. Please, don't hurt me." Gwen pleaded as the cold rain dripped down her face and plastered her hair to her head. The two men approached her; the one holding the knife sneered at her.

"Give us what we want sweetheart and you won't get hurt." The man replied as his accomplice leered at Gwen.

"And we know exactly what we want from you." The second man leered as he stroked her face with a gloved hand. Gwen smacked the man's hand away. The man's leer turned to a frown and his hand clenched into a fist. Gwen shielded her head but the blow never came. Instead there were two loud thumps and the sound of the men swearing. Gwen removed her arms from her head and stared.

The two men were fighting a third man. The third man was slinging webs at the men; using one web to grab one of the men and throw him bodily down the alley. The man hit the ground and didn't get up again. The second man with the knife charged at the stranger who ducked the blow and punched the man before using another web to throw him into the wall. The second man slumped to the ground, unconscious and the man turned and looked at Gwen who recognised him at once.

"Spiderman," Gwen breathed. Everyone in the city knew about Spiderman, the mysterious hero who protected the people from crime and danger. Nobody knew his real identity and his name was derived from the man's abilities to shoot webs from his hands, allowing him to fight and fly all over the city as though swinging from a giant spider web. Whilst many supported Spiderman and regarded him as a hero; there was also a smear campaign against his use of vigilante justice and the fact that the hero himself usually left a note with the latest criminals he had caught that was almost cockily signed:_ 'Your friendly neighbourhood Spiderman.'_ Everyone was desperate to know who Spiderman was and Gwen squinted through the rain, she noticed that he wasn't wearing his mask. Gwen tilted her head before taking a cautious step forwards.

Arthur caught his breath and looked up. He froze at the sight of Gwen, tilting her head as though trying to recognise him through the dim light offered by the streetlights at each end of the alley and the few lights coming from the library windows. It was then he realised he wasn't wearing his mask and as Gwen stepped forwards, Arthur quickly used his webs to lift himself into the air, out of Gwen's sight before she could discover his real identity. As Arthur landed on the roof, he fumbled for his mask and tugged it over his head as he heard Gwen speak.

"Wait!" Gwen called as Spiderman rose into the air and vanished. Gwen looked nervously around the alley and went to grab her umbrella. This wasn't the first time Spiderman had saved her life and she was curious as to who the hero was; she wanted to see the face of the man who had saved her life.

"You seem to have a knack for getting into trouble."

Gwen turned and smiled at Spiderman who was cheekily hanging upside down from a web just a few feet away from her before walking towards him. There truly was something incredible about Spiderman, even if she didn't know who he really was. Whoever he was, she knew that he was brave and strong with an honourable sense of doing what was just and right.

Gwen smiled at Arthur, who was grateful the mask hid his identity yet he was also slightly jealous. Gwen never smiled at him like that. It made Arthur wonder just what Gwen thought about his spidery alter-ego.

"You have a knack for saving my life." Gwen retorted. "I think I might have a stalker."

"I was just in the neighbourhood. It wasn't much really; just a pair of idiots who needed a lesson taught to them." Arthur dismissed and Gwen shook her head.

"You're amazing," Gwen commented and Arthur shrugged his shoulders. He knew what some people thought about him and at the end of the day; he only was Spiderman due to that freak spider bite he'd received from a spider during a trip to a science research centre. If he hadn't have been bitten, he wouldn't be a hero.

"Not everyone would say that." Arthur replied and Gwen looked at him more seriously but Arthur could see the look of awe and affection in her eyes.

"But you are." Gwen insisted and Arthur realised what the meaning behind Gwen's expression was. Gwen was falling in love with Spiderman.

"Thanks," Arthur replied genuinely.

"I should be the one thanking you." Gwen replied as she stepped closer towards Arthur and reached out to where his mask connected to the rest of his skin-tight costume that hid any aspect of his real identity as a nineteen year old university student.

"Wait," Arthur said quickly. He couldn't let Gwen know he was really Spiderman. If anyone discovered who he really was, they would both be in great danger. He was also worried about what Gwen would think if she knew her best friend had been lying to her; Arthur had never told anyone his secret and what if Gwen didn't feel the same way about Spiderman if she knew Spiderman was Arthur? What if she thought he was really a freak?

Gwen moved her hand away before she slowly placed it into the end of his mask and pushed it upwards, slowly and gently. Careful not to reveal nothing more than his chin and mouth, Gwen held his head in her hands and Arthur realised what was going to happen just seconds before it did. Of course, what other way could she thank him?

Gwen wasn't usually one for acting so rashly but she didn't know when she would see Spiderman again and therefore decided to take the chance as it came. Keeping his head steady in her hands, Gwen leaned forward and placed her lips to his.

As kisses go, it was perfect. It was strange at the beginning, given that Arthur was hanging upside down but neither of them cared about the blood that had rushed to Arthur's head as they stood entwined in the alley. Arthur got a bit braver and pressed his tongue to Gwen's lips and Gwen opened her mouth to deepen the kiss and allowed their tongues to meet and into the other's mouth. Arthur couldn't believe he was doing this. He was finally kissing the girl he had liked since the day they had met.

Gwen couldn't believe she was doing this. She was kissing Spiderman in the rain; his lips were plump and firm and he tasted like spearmint. She suddenly now really loved the taste of spearmint. Neither of them were sure how long they were kissing for but eventually the need for air got too much and they reluctantly broke apart. Gwen pressed a quick kiss onto Arthur's swollen lips before she placed the mask back over his face again.

"Until we meet again." Arthur replied in a huskier voice than normal and he managed to glimpse the exhilarated and surprised grin on Gwen's face before he retracted his webs, causing him to rise into the air and back onto the library roof.

Arthur landed on the roof and quickly put his own clothes back on before excitedly punching the air and lowering himself to the ground before driving home. He had just had the time of his life! He just saved Gwen's life but he discovered that she was falling for him (well Spiderman but he was Spiderman so technically she liked him) and he had kissed her! Arthur grinned as he drove, whilst it was hard having a superhero alter-ego, he had to admit that being a superhero did have its perks.

Gwen pressed her fingers to her lips before she turned and walked out of the alley in a daze. She still couldn't believe what had just happened. Spiderman had just saved her life and she had kissed him. Gwen walked back to the student halls in a daze and as she showered and changed into warm clothes before heading to bed, all she could think about was her masked saviour and just who he really was. Gwen wasn't sure why or how but there was something inexplicably familiar about Spiderman. She just wasn't sure what it was.

The rain had stopped by the next day and as Gwen bypassed the alley on her way to her lecture, she couldn't keep the smile off her face as she glanced down the alley which bore no traces of what had happened the previous night. Even as she continued walking towards the campus; Gwen couldn't keep the smile off her face as she thought about her encounter with Spiderman. As she entered the classroom, Gwen walked over to Arthur who was sitting at their usual desk with a grin matching hers on his face as he doodled on the edge of his notebook.

"You're in a good mood this morning." Gwen commented, usually Arthur was a right grump in the mornings, especially during their nine o'clock lectures. Arthur casually shrugged his shoulders as he placed a piece of chewing gum into his mouth and offered Gwen some.

"I had a good night last night." Arthur replied and Gwen looked at him as she chewed on the gum, a smile spreading on her own face as she realised it was spearmint flavoured.

"Why what happened?" Gwen asked curiously, she herself had had an interesting night after they'd left the library but Arthur wasn't to know about that. Yet it seemed Arthur had his own secrets as he lightly shrugged his shoulders as their lecturer entered the room.

"You'd never believe me if I told you."


End file.
